Karenjit Kaur: The Untold Story of Sunny Leone Trolled, It Shows India Won’t Accept a Woman Who Makes Her Own Choices

After a lot of anticipation, Sunny Leone's biopic titled Karenjit Kaur: The Untold Story of Sunny Leone has been released on July 16 on Zee5 app. The show documents the life of the pornstar-turned-actor, in which she plays herself. Predictably, a movie on a pornstar releasing in India is certain to garner a lot of controversy. And it has started happening.

Even before the show released, a Gurudwara committee - Shiromani Gurudwara Prabandhak Commitee, objected to the use of the word "Kaur" in the name of the show. Their argument being that "Kaur" is a word of respect that the tenth Sikh Guru, Guru Gobind Singh used for women. Also Sunny Leone doesn't follow the teachings of the Sikh community, according to them, and so she doesn't have the right to use the title with her name.

There is another set of people who are objecting to the show. These are the Twitter warriors. They have stared a debate on the social networking site arguing why a show is being made on "a woman like Sunny Leone" in the first place.

Take a look at some of these comments -

Now, let us see some facts. Not too long ago, there was a film on one of Bollywood's most popular actors Sanjay Dutt. Dutt's biopic Sanju was received with open arms. Both audience and critics alike praised the film. Some did point out that the film is an attempt at clearing Dutt's image in public, but that doesn't cover the fact that it has already crossed over 300 crores in just fifteen day since its release.

We won't talk about whether Sanju is a good or bad film, or if a biopic on Sanjay Dutt should have been made at all. We won't comment on whether Sanju is indeed an attempt to gain people's sympathy by portraying Dutt as a victim of media trial. We will only ask you one question -- Why is it fair for Sanjay Dutt to openly admit to having slept with over 300 women and unfair for Sunny Leone to openly become a pornstar?

While we are fine with a man making his choices, right or wrong, we are disrespectful to a woman with a mind of her own. Some of these Twitter critics haven't even seen the show yet. Just the name Sunny Leone is enough to trigger them. Karenjit Kaur: The Untold Story of Sunny Leone is actually a depiction of the life she has lead and what made her become a pornstar. It is actually aimed at giving people a perspective to the situations that could possibly lead a woman into making such a choice.

We are extremely disrespectful to women who who are commercial sex workers or pornstars.  Sex workers go through worse situations; some may get into the business forcefully. While there are many others who would do so voluntarily.  It's a choice that she makes and she always has reasons to make it.

Having said all of that, why is it so easy for us to accept and forgive a man like Sanjay Dutt, born into a supportive, loving family with all his vices and not a woman like Sunny who has taken her own decisions? And lastly, Leone has always stated that she has no regrets about the choices she made. She later went on to also start a new, more "respectable" second innings of her life after moving to India. Why are we still stuck at judging and hating her over a past she had and not the life she is leading now?

And of course, the show is to view at discretion. One always has the choice to not watch it. It can happen silently, without abusing, without disgracing.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 16, 2018 07:40 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).